Slowdive returns to Danforth Music Hall: just announced Toronto shows

When British shoegazers Slowdive played their first Toronto concert in 20 years, in 2014, our reviewer gave the show 5Ns, noting that “even those of us way too young to have waited two decades felt like it was worth the ­delay.”

If you missed that gig, you don’t have to wait that long for another chance to catch Neil Halstead, Christian Savill, Nick Chaplin, Rachel Goswell and Simon Scott on stage. The group returns to the Danforth Music Hall in May, this time with new ­material.

Formed in Reading, England in 1989, Slowdive were pivotal in shaping the sound of shoegaze alongside acts like Ride, My Bloody Valentine and Chapterhouse, merging punky distortion and ethereal pop over three albums including 1992’s Souvlaki, now widely considered one of the best shoegaze albums ever.

The band is expected to release a new album this year via their new label, Dead Oceans. Drummer Scott revealed in an interview with a Danish publication last year that their next record was done, but official confirmation is pending. Earlier this month, the band put out their first new song in 22 years, Star Roving. Judging from its sound (and title), not a lot has changed.